Just Started Studying for 200-310 CCDA

I've gotten to the point of my studies where certification is not a requirement for anything I'm doing professionally or academically. I was going to study for a Microsoft SCCM 2012 certification for my new job, but I've been told that we are not migrating from SCCM 2007 R3 or Windows 10 any time in the near future.

That being said, I thought to myself "What am I going to do NOW to get what I want in the FUTURE?" Aside from working on my MBA in IT Management, I decided to forego any Microsoft studies until it's absolutely required for employment. My ultimate dream is to be at least CCIE R&S, then branch off from there. I decided to work on the CCDA by purchasing the OCG from Cisco Press (got a fairly decent discount), and I have a Skillsoft account from my school. I figure that will keep me busy for a while. I recently passed the 210-260 CCNA Security exam, so I have a bit of time to renew my Cisco certs by September of '19.

Once I am done with the CCDA, I will move on to the CCNP R&S, then take the last test that will complete CCDP (unless Cisco's requirements change in the future). From there, I will probably kill myself studying for the CCIE. Along that path, I would also like to someday work for a Cisco Partner and achieve either the CCAI or CCSI training certifications, as I love to teach. I have not been fortunate enough in my professional path to have a network administration or engineering position, where I was responsible for maintaining the Cisco networking devices. My previous positions have focused on the desktop and server side of things (aside from teaching).